Calcutta High Court on Tuesday asked parents to clear 80 per cent of the fees due to 112 unaided private schools by August 15 and told the institutions to restore access to online classes and exams to the pupils who could not make payments.

The parents have sought waiver of fees other than that charged for tuition. The plea is still being considered by the court, which issued an interim order on Tuesday.

Advocate Priyanka Agarwal had told the court that the parents had found it difficult to pay the entire school fees because of the economic crisis perpetrated by the pandemic.

A division bench of Justices Sanjib Banerjee and Moushumi Bhattacharya said in the interim order: “By August 15, 2020, the outstanding dues of each student as at July 31, 2020, have to be cleared to the extent of 80 per cent. Those already debarred from online courses or online examinations will be restored to their previous status.”

The court added: “It is hoped that if substantial payments are made on behalf of the students who are in default, relevant schools will not discontinue the online courses for any meagre shortfall in payment.”

The directives are applicable to “all classes and all courses”, the court said.

Advocate Agarwal had told the court that the 112 schools named in the petition had prevented students from taking part in online classes and were not allowing them to write online exams because they had not paid their fees.

The bench said the matter would be taken up on the second Monday of August. It added that the authorities of the 112 schools would have the liberty to take part in the case on the next date of hearing. Copies of the interim order will be sent to the schools.
The judges mentioned in the order that some of the schools had informed the court that they had paid the salaries of their teachers and other employees during the lockdown.

The state, represented by advocate Kishore Datta, said some private schools had accepted the government’s request not to pressure guardians to pay fees during the Covid crisis. “But most of the schools had also said that to clear the salaries of non-teaching and teaching staff, the students had been asked to pay their fees,” Datta added.